Sermon of the Day

It was a cool dawn in spring. The world was stirring itself up for the day as the Sun made it's appearance.

A group of Zen monks, fresh and eager faced, were sitting on straw-filled mattresses in a courtyard. The Zen Master arrived and sat under a tree. He chanted with his head bowed and looked with repose at the disciples.

As he was about to begin his sermon, a bird alighted on a branch above him. It hopped about energetically and broke into a birdsong. All eyes and ears turned towards it. The bright-colored feathered creature sang for a while and flew away.

Turning to the monks the Master said, "The sermon for the day is over."

Milarepa's Cave

The Annapurna Circuit trek is amazing for the varied geography, picturesque villages and views of the mighty Himalayas. Being a teahouse trek, it can be done without a guide, porters, mules, tents, stove, fuel, ration and motley paraphernalia. Excellent lodges on the trail promise a warm bed and wholesome food besides an opportunity to meet, chat and socialize with trekkers from around the world. So, the Apple Pie Trail, as it is nicknamed, is what I chose for my first visit to Nepal in Sep-Oct 2009.

This trail initially follows the lush Marsyangdi river valley, moving away from it after Manang (3540m). The vegetation starts thinning till there is almost none as the trail approaches Yak Kharkha (4018m). In another day or two it goes over the windswept Thorung La at 5416m to descend dramatically into the cold desertlike region of the upper Kali Gandaki valley. The list of impressive 7000m+ and 8000m+ peaks one sees would be too long to mention here. The valleys are deep and broad and the scenery left us spellbound. I and my friend Shalini Menon did this trek at a leisurely pace to do justice to the place and also because this was the first time either of us would go above 5000m. We also did numerous day-hikes, Milarepa’s Cave being one of them.

On day 8 (Oct 03) we were in Braga (aka Bhraka) at 3360m, separated from Manang by 15-20 minutes. Having found a room for 100 Nepali Rupees, we decided to spend the next 2 days in that region and do day-hikes up to 4300 - 4600m in order to acclimatize for the tougher days ahead. I woke up late the next day at about 08:00. S was already in the dining hall. We had a heavy breakfast while reading our respective books. I was reading Annapurna Circuit, a Himalayan Journey by Andrew Stevenson which S had already finished. The lodge owner, a friendly, bearded, tough middle-aged Manangi with glowing reddish sun-baked skin noticed this and told us that the author had stayed in his lodge a few times and kept in touch with him. He showed me a hard-bound autographed copy of the book on display in a corner. He said various autographed copies had been either damaged or stolen by trekkers and the author had been kind to send him a new one each time.

At about 10:45 we took our daypacks and left for Milarepa’s Cave which is on the slopes high above Braga and Manang, to the true right of the Marsyangdi. The lodge owner was kind enough to walk with us a short way and point out the rough direction we needed to go in. Going south along the river, we soon reached a wooden bridge. Crossing over, we were told that we would see two paths ascending into the mountains. The one on the left was steep while the right one was gentler. We chose the right. Clouds shrouded the mighty peaks and the sky was a mass of gray as we began the ascent. The visibility on the trail and in the valley below was good though. The trail seemed well used, though much narrower than the main circuit. We passed numerous cairns and chortens. The settlements in the valley below looked picturesque and tiny, dwarfed by the mountains. After about an hour or so, we encountered steep rock and sand formations of the kind one sees in Spiti in HP, India. Unlike Spiti though, it was quite green here due to higher rainfall.

Milarepa, a 11^th century Tibetan mystic and poet had lived and meditated in this region for many years. This is a historical fact, not a myth. Many regions of Nepal have had strong connections with Tibet, and the influence of this can be seen to this day. After China occupied Tibet, a group of Tibetans called Khampas made Mustang their base and continued guerrilla warfare against the Chinese for many years. Mustang is just a week’s hike from the upper Kali Gandaki valley. Regions such as Mustang and outer Dolpo in Nepal are probably greater strongholds of Tibetan culture than Tibet itself these days, though in a fossilized form and losing their seclusion and identity rapidly.

We continued ascending and I began sensing a mystical quality in the air as we passed through an Alpine forest. It was a strange, uncanny feeling. The spirit of Milarepa, a giant among the various mystics of Tibet, seemed to have permeated the rocks, soil, air, forest and the mountains. The feeling was neither pleasant nor disturbing; just strange, special and peaceful. S could sense it too, as we talked about it later. If this seems weird to you, you could just put it down to the wind blowing in my vacuous cranial cavity.

At some point we encountered workers building a Stupa. I smiled and asked how far the Milarepa Gompa was. In another 30 minutes or less, I reached the steps leading to the small, unimpressive Gompa. It was 12:45. It had been a pleasant hike and I was not tired. Just then it started drizzling, gently at first and then more heavily. Seeing a hut from which some fumes were emanating, I ran for shelter. Inside was an old Lama who welcomed me and plied me with hot water, black tea, powdery biscuits and some kind of prasad. We sat by the wood-fired stove cum fireplace, trying to talk in broken English while the rain made a racket. The Lama figured that I knew Hindi. He would say a word in English and ask me translate it into Hindi, and then translate it into Tibetan himself. He seemed particularly amused by the sound of the word ladki, girl in Hindi, and had a good laugh at it. S too arrived in a while and was extended the same hospitality. We wondered what drove an old man like him to live alone in the mountains, so frugally and simply, and in conditions that would surely be quite harsh. What was it like to live such a life?

After it stopped raining, we said goodbye to him and went looking for Milarepa’s Cave. We spent another 2 or 2.5 hours roaming around and going further up the mountains in search. We saw many blue sheep, aka bharal, grazing in the meadows that were enveloped in a gentle swirling mist. They seemed unperturbed by our presence but would move away the moment we were within 15-20 feet radius. The cave was not to be found though. We descended back to the Gompa and followed another path that I had missed earlier. I don’t remember it well now, but it was quite close to the Gompa. It climbed a little and then traversed the side of the mountain on the right. Finally, I saw the cave on one of the hillsides. It was unmistakable, a small unadorned cave with offerings, incense and a little statue of Milarepa.

The skies were still overcast. None of the mountains above were visible and neither was the valley below. I descended to the river in 50-60 minutes by the steep route. At the bridge, I waited for S and we headed for the lodge.

The lodge owner said he thought we might have lost the trail and was wondering what took us so long to return. Over ginger tea and hot chocolate, we narrated our experience and it was only after talking to him that we realized we had ascended a fair bit higher than Milarepa’s Cave. Although shrouded by the mist and clouds, another 2-3 hours hike would have brought us to the base of Annapurna III (7555m), perhaps close enough to see the Gangapurna glacier. Well, that’s what I’m gonna do if I ever come here again, I thought.

I treated myself to a large pizza and chocolate brownie for dinner that night, and we made plans for a day-hike to Ice Lake the next day.